A Most Unusual Gift
by Mahler Avatar
Summary: Shortly after a battle with Kim, Shego nearly loses her life, but then becomes the recipient of an unusual gift from an even more unusual source. Submitted for Whitem's 4th Annual Snowdaze Holiday Story Contest.


_(Submitted as my humble entry to Whitem's 4th Annual Snowdaze Holiday Story Contest)_

**A Most Unusual Gift**

It was Christmas Eve, and Team Possible had once again been called upon for a last minute mission against that pair who now seemed to be their eternal adversaries.

"That's it, Kim Possible! No more Mr. Nice Guy!"

The blue-skinned mad scientist was beside himself with rage as he observed his latest doomsday weapon lying on the floor, smashed into so much scrap metal by Kim's Kung Fu move number 15 of 16.

Kim couldn't help but respond with a lopsided smile. "And since when have you _ever_ been 'Mr. Nice Guy,' Dr. Drakken?"

As she easily avoided another one of Shego's plasma blasts, she sarcastically continued, "Or anything even remotely close to it?"

"Nice one, KP!" Ron added with a smug smile, which earned him his very own plasma bolt from Shego. He tried to dive out of the way, but was unable to avoid a direct hit on his tuckus.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Hey, that smarts!"

Now it was Shego's turn to grin. "Serves you right, doofus."

"Hey, that's _Mister_ Doofus to you, Shego!"

She responded with a small shrug. "Whatever. Now it's _your_ turn, Princess."

Shego leapt at Kim while skillfully firing off several volleys of well-aimed energy bolts to keep her pinned down. Just as before, Kim deftly avoided each one. But with her focus on Shego's attack, she failed to notice the oil on the floor that had leaked out of Drakken's wrecked device. With a surprised look, her feet slipped out from under her and she found herself flat on her back. Shego immediately pounced, landing on top of her with a fierce look of triumph.

"Hah! I've got you now, Kimmie!"

Kim grabbed Shego's arms, desperately trying to keep the villainess' brightly glowing hands away from her face.

Sensing ultimate victory was finally at hand, Shego sneered, "I've been waiting for this a _long_ time. Any last words, Cupcake?"

Kim grit her teeth as she furiously tried to free herself. "Yeah. You've put on some weight, Shego."

Shego's eyes flared in anger as she screamed back, "You've _earned_ this, Possible!"

But as she shook free of the heroine's grip and prepared to deliver her death blow, Kim realized that Shego was now slightly off balance. Her back now lubricated with the oil she had just slipped in, Kim allowed her body to slip beneath her adversary, Shego's momentum now just enough to carry her in the other direction. With another deft move, Kim gave Shego a swift scissors kick, flipping her backwards into the control panel, which instantly burst into a shower of multicolored sparks.

Ron looked on in childlike wonder at the electrical display. "Ooh, that looks almost as pretty as _your_ Christmas tree lights, KP!"

But a computer voice began to intone its dire warning. "Overload in progress. Self-destruct sequence activated. Ten... nine..."

Ron indignantly whined, "Hey, that's _my_ job!"

Kim immediately grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the exit. "Let's worry about that later, Ron. We've only got a few seconds left to get out of here!"

With Kim leading the way, she ran through the open front door of the lair with Ron and Drakken right behind her. The entire complex went up in a massive explosion a few seconds later, and everyone was knocked to the ground by the powerful blast.

Coughing, Ron stumbled to his feet. "You okay, Kim?"

Brushing herself off, she answered, "Just fine, Ron." She turned to the bruised but otherwise uninjured villain lying beside her. "And now it's time to take both you and Shego on your inevitable trip back to Cell Block D. When will you two ever learn?" With a self-satisfied smile, she grinned widely. "But I couldn't have asked for a nicer Christmas present. So if you and Shego would be so kind as to..."

But when she looked around, Shego was nowhere to be found.

Kim paled. "Uh, did either of you see her get out?"

Both slowly shook their heads.

"Omigosh... don't tell me that..."

A tremble in his voice, Ron blanched. "Uh, Kim?"

He pointed to something in the smoking ruins of Drakken's freshly destroyed lair.

As Kim cautiously approached the remains of the collapsed entrance, she spotted a black glove protruding from beneath the rubble. She gasped in horror.

"Ron! Quick! Help me dig her out!"

* * *

Thanking his lucky stars that he had actually taken Shego's advice and placed the fire department on speed dial, Drakken waited fearfully for them to arrive. Three minutes later, sirens could be heard in the distance.

All of his bluster and animosity now evaporated, he fearfully asked the young heroine, "Is she... is she..."

Kim wagged her head. "Not yet, but she's in real bad shape."

Shego's catsuit was shredded and bloodied, several shards of sharp metal protruding from her back.

Ron felt as if he would pass out. "As evil as she was... is... I wouldn't wish anything like this on my worst enemy."

Kim grimaced. "She _is_ our worst enemy, Ron."

The fire truck and ambulance then arrived, and the rescue personnel immediately went to work.

"But I agree. I wouldn't wish a fate like this on anybody, no matter how evil they had ever been, are, or will be."

As they loaded Shego into the ambulance, Kim glanced at Drakken, who appeared for all the world like a helpless child. Immediately feeling a tinge of pity, she made a quick decision.

"Ron, while I go in the ambulance with her, you take the coupe and follow us. And... take Drakken along too."

Ron looked surprised, but nodded in acknowledgment. "Sure thing, KP."

Kim then grabbed Drakken by the collar. "And if you even _think_ of trying to slip away, I will notify Global Justice, the Middleton Police Department _and_ the FBI, and instruct them shoot you _on sight_."

She pulled him even closer, anger flaring behind her deep green eyes. "Understood?"

He nodded with a whimper of fear. "Perfectly. And... and thank you."

"Just don't make me regret this. Okay, let's go!"

As Kim closed the door to the ambulance, Ron and Drakken got into the Sloth coupe.

Drakken mumbled, "Do... do you think she's going to make it?"

Ron heaved a deep sigh as he started up the engine. "Those injuries looked real wrongsick, Dr. D. So to be perfectly honest, I don't know. I just don't know..."

* * *

The next morning, the Middleton Medical Center was enjoying a peaceful Christmas morning, except of course for the dozens of GJ agents and the fully deployed SWAT team surrounding the building as a precaution. Inside the ER, the monitor was softly and steadily beeping, indicating that the room's current occupant was still alive, if just barely.

Shego's eyes fluttered open. She looked up and saw a blurry figure sitting in a chair opposite her. As her eyes began to focus, she noticed that the figure had long, red hair. Shego sat bolt upright, suddenly wincing in pain.

"Let that be a lesson to you, Shego. Due to your injuries, I wouldn't advise any quick movements at the moment."

She groggily responded, "Kim Possible? What are you doing here? And just where the hell am I?"

She winced again. "Let me rephrase that. If _you're_ here, I _must_ be in hell."

This brought a trace of a smile to Kim's face. "No, you're in a hospital. You survived the explosion, but you were critically injured. But you pulled through the operation fine. It seems those comet powers of yours also grant you some spankin' recuperative abilities."

"Yeah, I learned that a few years ago after an aircar crash. That's why _I _always drive now and never let Drakken near the controls. So, what day is this, and what operation?"

"It's Christmas morning, Shego. And besides the operation for your deep cuts and burns, my mom also did some emergency brain surgery to relieve some serious swelling. It actually took more than a little effort to convince her to perform it, since she knew that you had just tried to kill me. Hippocratic oath and all that, of course."

"Of course," she grumbled back.

"And then there was the kidney transplant. Both of them were critically injured and had failed, and you nearly died from that alone. Luckily, there was a donor immediately available."

Shego's eyes by now were able to fully focus. She immediately noticed that Kim was wearing a hospital gown, and sitting in a wheelchair.

"So, it looks like you were injured too."

"No, actually. Ron, Drakken and I all escaped the explosion."

"Then what are you doing..." Shego's respiration and heart rate immediately spiked as she suspected what might have just transpired.

"Are you trying to tell me that..." She left her question hanging in the air, for by the look on Kim's face, she already had her answer.

Kim airily replied, "It's a real weird thing, Shego, but after all these years, it was amazing to discover that we're both the same ferocious blood type."

Shego instantly paled as she once again sprang up in her bed. "YOU MEAN YOU DONATED ONE OF YOUR KIDNEYS TO ME!?"

She bit her lip to control the sudden sharp pain in her back, while an orderly and an armed GJ agent rushed in to see what the commotion was about. Kim gently waved them away.

"It's all right. She knows now, so please stand down."

The agent tipped his hat and left the room. The villainess struggled to sit up, but more carefully this time.

"Kim, I think I came closer to killing you last night than at any other time we've ever fought. And now I find out that you... you..."

Kim finished her sentence. "That I saved your life?" She gave a tiny shrug. "Yeah, I guess that's true, but..."

"But why? We're mortal enemies for crying out loud!" Her eyes immediately narrowed.

"Oh, I see your plan. So you can hold it over me for the rest of my life, perhaps? And maybe gain some kind of psychological advantage over me when we face each other in battle once again?"

Kim sighed. "No, it's not that at all."

Shego blanched as a terrible thought entered her mind. "Oh, no. Please, no. You're not about to tell me that we're actually _related _or something, and out of some twisted sense of obligation you decided to..."

Kim interrupted her with a chuckle. "No, Shego. We're not related as far as I know. That would be _so_ reverse Darth Vaderish." A brief look of fear crossed her face. "At least I hope not, quite frankly. But when the doctor said that without an immediate operation your chances of survival were slim to none, and when he said there were no compatible donors available, on a hunch I had them run a blood test."

Kim couldn't keep from smirking, if only a little. "So, no big."

Shego let out a long, slow sigh. "So, you had mercy on me. After I had just tried to kill you." It was a statement, not a question.

Kim took a long time to reply. "Well, the way I look at it, it's the spirit of the season, Shego. At this time of year we exchange gifts to celebrate the birth of a tiny innocent baby, who came to bring peace to the world, and would eventually give his life to save it. When he grew up, he would be mercilessly mocked and cruelly tortured by his enemies, then put to a shameful, painful death."

She continued with a trace of a smile, "And I think you can definitely relate to the mocking and torturing part."

Shego immediately answered and without remorse, "It's an ingrained part of my nature, Cupcake. And I rather enjoy it, thank you very much."

"And yet, when he was on the cross, he said, 'Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they're doing.' "

Shego shifted uncomfortably in her bed. "So, what, you're casting me in the role of a Roman soldier, and you in the role of Savior of the world? A little presumptuous of you, don't you think?"

Kim firmly wagged her head. "Not at all, Shego. I've saved the world in my own way many times, but nothing like he has. But I do like to think I'm at least following in his footsteps, and maybe with his help, I can lead others by example once in a while."

"Yeah, but donating a kidney to an avowed enemy seems a little over the top, if you ask me."

They continued in silence for a few moments.

Suddenly, Shego frowned. "Uh, this isn't about to turn into a sermon, is it?"

Kim laughed gently. "No, not right now at least. But come Easter, I just might reconsider."

Gritting her teeth through the pain, Shego tried to snark back with an attitude she now no longer felt. "Well, this is all fine and good, but just to clue you, this doesn't change anything, Kimmie. We're still enemies, and always will be. And once I'm better, you can count on me..."

But Shego's veiled threat sounded hollow even to her own ears. She sighed heavily.

"You can count on me... to take this new _sitch_ into consideration. Just don't be jumping to any irrational conclusions that I'm going to suddenly turn over a new leaf and become a goody-two-shoes like you, Little Miss Priss."

With a twinkle in her eye, Kim replied, "I wouldn't even consider it."

Ron then entered the room. "KP, your doctor wants you to come back to your room and rest."

He gave Shego a cautious look. "Everything, uh, okay here?"

Kim smiled back up at him. "For the moment, at least." She turned back to the erstwhile villainess. "Merry Christmas, Shego."

Shego replied with a trace of a smile. "Merry Christmas to you too, Kim."

As Ron wheeled Kim out, Shego was thankful that the young redhead couldn't see the tears that were now forming in her eyes.

Ron began, "So, Kim. How did she take the news?"

"Oh, about as well as expected."

"That bad, huh?"

"Maybe. But given enough time, I have kind of a good feeling about how this might eventually turn out. We'll just have to wait and see."

_**The End**_

_**And a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to the entire Kimmunity!**_


End file.
